Carlos Ortiz of Torque GC took the lead in Texas by winning the individual LIV golf event at Houston Golf Club. He shot a five-under 67 on Sunday to finish at 15 under par.
Ortiz beat Adrian Melonc by one stroke. Patrick Reed and David Puig finished tied for third at 13 under par. The Torque members recorded six birdies and one bogey on the day.
His best result this year was a fourth-place finish at LIV Hong Kong. Ortiz also had a chance in Adelaide but fell short, finishing T22.
“It means a lot, I’ve been working really hard,” Ortiz said. “I came close a few times. I think I learned a lot from Australia and I just tried to be patient and do what I had to do and it worked out.”
As a team, Torque finished tied for fourth place with four aces. Creeks GC won the team division by two strokes with a total of 33 under par.
Richard Bland led the way with a five-under 67 on Sunday. Melonc finished with a four-under 68, Martin Kaymer with a two-under 70 and Kare Samoja with a one-under 71 round to round out the team.
Brooks Koepka’s Smash GC and Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs GC were runners-up at 31 under par.
Koepka led the team with a 7-under 65 on Sunday. Taylor Gooch shot a 6-under 66. Garcia led the team with a 4-under 68.
Twelve LIV Golf players will be heading to Pinehurst next week for the U.S. Open, but Ortiz will not be among them.
“I won’t be able to play the U.S. Open, but yeah, I guess I’m gearing up for the summer in Nashville and Europe,” he said.
LIV Golf’s next tournament will be held at The Grove in Nashville from June 21-23.
Savannah Lee Richardson is a Golf Staff Writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow us for more golf articles. Follow You can follow us on all major social platforms. You can also follow us on Twitter Follow Instagram: @savannah_leigh_sports
